The Incident A New Twist
by LynnEGib
Summary: What if Black Kettle couldn't control the dog soldiers


**The Incident – A New Twist**

_**What if Black Kettle hadn't been able to control the dog soldiers?**_

After the Cheyenne left Colorado Springs without Jake, but saying they would be back for him, Sully decided to go to the reservation and try to keep the peace in spite of the fact that Jake had killed Little Eagle. Michaela offered to go with him, but Sully refused the idea. "You might not be welcome 'cause you're white," he said.

"Well, you are white, too," Dr. Mike pointed out.

"That's right," Sully responded, "I might not be welcome either."

When Sully arrived at the reservation, he asked Cloud Dancing to give him another day to convince Jake to tell the truth and give himself up to the tribal council. Cloud Dancing said he would try, but he was not sure he could. The dog soldiers were renegades and many of them not even Cheyenne, but they were the ones feeding the tribe. The dog soldiers preferred to act rather than sit like sheep. Sometimes even Cloud Dancing wondered if he should join them. The spirits had told him war was coming and the medicine man felt they should fight when they were still strong rather than allowing the members of the tribe to be picked off one by one like Little Eagle.

When Sully returned to town, he went straight to Jake and tried again to get the barber to admit the truth and surrender to the council. Sully assured him he would try and help him, and that the tribe would be fair. Yet Jake was scared and continued to claim he hadn't done anything. Sully was disappointed that he couldn't get through to Jake, and his worry about what would happen next between the whites and the Indians grew.

After stepping out of the barbershop, Sully saw that there was still light at the clinic, so he went over there. He wanted to share his troubled thoughts with Dr. Mike who was obviously working late.

"It is hard to reason with Jake when he is drinking," she replied after she learned about the argument between the two men.

Michaela hadn't been that supportive of Sully during this incident because she felt Horace would not lie. That was why she thought Sully was mistaken. After all, he hadn't been there and seen anything. Of course she knew that Sully cared and was only trying to help and play peacemaker. They were just getting ready to ride back to the homestead where the children waited for them, when they heard something outside. As they opened the door they saw Jake gagged and tied to a horse, being taken by dog soldiers.

More worried about the children than ever, Michaela and Sully rode home quickly. Fortunately they kids were all right. When Sully immediately wanted to go to the reservation and try to help Jake, Michaela and the family talked him into waiting until the morning so they could inform the town first. In the morning they told the town and of course some people wanted to call the army. Sully pointed out that if the army came they would massacre the Indians on the reservation and wouldn't notice if there was a white man there. After much discussion the town finally allowed Sully to go and speak for them and try to get Jake released.

When Sully arrived at the village the dog soldiers took his Cheyenne things like his beads and pushed him around as they took him to the center of the village. There Sully saw Jake tied to a post. He had obviously not been treated well. Cloud Dancing took Sully from the dog soldiers and gave him back his things. Sully reminded Cloud Dancing that he said he would give Sully another day, but Cloud Dancing explained that he had tried but didn't succeed. "You better go back to town," the medicine man suggested, "or the dog soldiers might turn on you, too." Sully shook his head, "I wanna to talk to the council." "Chief Black Kettle was calling a council," Cloud Dancing explained the situation, "but the dog soldiers want to torture Jake now." "But that would make things worse. Then the army will come for sure to massacre the Indians," Sully said, trying to reason with his friend.

While Sully was at the reservation, Michaela walked into the telegraph office right at the moment when Horace admitted to Myra that he had lied and Sully had been right. "I wanted the other men to like me," Horace confessed, " That's why I went along with the lie. But Jake didn't see the Indian; he thought it was a deer. The shooting was an accident!"

Even though this was true, the men's lying had made it worse. In an attempt to save the situation, Michaela immediately took Horace to Dorothy so she would print a retraction in the Gazette. Next she wanted Horace to ride out to the reservation with her and tell the Indians the truth. Myra was afraid that they wouldn't make it, but Michaela was confident they would. Horace felt he should go because he wanted to set things right. Matthew, because he had gone through a vision quest, wanted to go with them hoping that would help them get to the reservation safely.

When they at last left town, Michaela was feeling badly that she hadn't believed Sully. As soon as she would see him she intended to apologize.

As Sully sat with Cloud Dancing talking about the situation, one could see the differences growing between the two brothers. Cloud Dancing explained to Sully that the dog soldiers wanted justice and sometimes he agreed with them. Torturing and killing Jake would let the whites know that the Indians were serious. "All we hear from the white man are lies, and it is happening over and over again. The Dog Soldiers say it must stop, and they are right," the medicine man ended their conversation when a commotion at the edge of the camp distracted them.

It turned out to be the arrival of Dr. Mike, Horace and Matthew. The dog soldiers were somewhat rough with them as they had been with Sully. As soon as Michaela spotted Sully she revealed to him that they had just learned that Jake did shoot Little Eagle. "But it was an accident," she quickly assured. "Yeah," Sully replied, "Jake had finally told the truth, too."

Sully tried to reason with his friend, but Cloud Dancing said Jake had to die because he had killed one of them. That was why Sully turned to Black Kettle, pleading that the Chief wouldn't let the Dog Soldiers torture and kill Jake. "That would only lead to the army attacking the village. That would mean war," he said with an urgent voice.

Yet Cloud Dancing wouldn't listen but continued arguing with his white brother, which eventually turned into a physical fight between the friends. Dr. Mike tried to stop it, but Black Kettle held her back. Finally she was able to bring them to their senses by telling them that they should be ashamed since they called each other brother.

As this was all going on, the Dog Soldiers were getting more and more agitated. They realized that Black Kettle was about to hold a tribal council and then the guilty one would be treated too lightly. They did not want that. Jake was their prisoner because it had been them who went into town and got him. In their opinion the other whites that had come to help him were theirs, too. Before Black Kettle could call a council the Dog Soldiers tied Jake's hands together with rawhide and attached the raw hide to a rope connected to one of their horses. They informed the band of Cheyenne led by Black Kettle that they were taking their prisoners to their camp to do with them what they pleased. They also reminded the tribe that the other four whites were their prisoners as well. Without waiting for any response four dog soldiers tied Sully, Michaela, Horace and Mathew as they had Jake.

Sully knew they were in trouble, but told the others to cooperate; fighting back would do no good now and would just upset the Dog Soldiers even more. Cloud Dancing was still mad at Sully so he did nothing to stop his brother from being taken. Snowbird came forward and appealed to Black Kettle for Dr. Mike, reminding him how much she had done for the children of the tribe. Black Kettle, however, raised his hand to silence her reminding her in return that the dog soldiers had the right to take these five prisoners to their camp and to decide what they wanted to do with them.

xxx

As they walked behind the horses, Sully wished Michaela hadn't come to support him. He hoped he could help her somehow and get her out of this, but he couldn't think of any sure way. He knew that the dog soldiers wanted to torture Jake so he feared that this was what awaited the rest of them, too. When they arrived at the dog soldier's camp, each prisoner was tied to a different pole as Jake had been in the village. The poles were put up in a circle, and Michaela was tied to the one right next to Sully, which helped her handle her fear. The dog soldiers went to the other side of their camp probably to discuss what they were going to do with these five white people. They knew that Sully could speak Cheyenne so they kept their voices low.

After much discussion two of the leaders of these dog soldiers came over to Sully. In Cheyenne they told him that their band had made one decision concerning their fate so far. They were going to give the woman a choice and they wanted Sully to translate the options for her and her decision for them. Sully told Michaela that the Dog Soldiers were going to offer her a choice and he would translate the choices and her selection. Michaela nodded her head and waited for what came next.

"Some of our tribes enslave women prisoners while others treat them the same as any prisoner," the speaker of the renegades informed Sully. "We are giving her the choice of becoming a slave or staying with you men and meeting the same fate as you do."

After Sully translated that to Michaela she remained silent, waiting for more information. "They said that One Eye had asked for you to be his slave," Sully eventually revealed. Hearing that, Michaela looked at One Eye who gave her a big grin that made her cringe inside. As a slave she would have to do anything this man demanded which included cooking and hauling water and wood to his teepee. He would have the right to beat her any time he felt the desire. Yet that wasn't all. She must be with One Eye whenever he demanded as well as bear his children. When Sully translated that he could tell she would not want to choose that life. She particularly objected to the bearing children requirement. She knew though that becoming One Eye's slave meant she would live. If she didn't, she would remain with the other prisoners and meet the same fate they would. Michaela didn't hesitate to make her choice. "I'll stay with you," she told Sully.

Yet he warned her that he assumed that they all would be tortured since the dog soldiers had already announced that's what they wanted to with Jake - and eventually kill them. Tears came to Michaela's eyes and she swallowed the lump in her throat, but stayed with her decision. Even knowing what would probably happen was still a better choice for her than becoming a slave.

After this decision was accepted, the dog soldiers moved away, where Sully couldn't overhear their discussion, in order to make more plans. When they returned they explained another choice the prisoners had to make. The Indians had decided, as it was common in some tribes, to ask for ransom from the town for some of their prisoners. They were going to release one prisoner to go back to Colorado Springs and explain that the whites could have back another hostage if they paid a certain amount of money. They were going to let the town decide whom they wanted set free. But first the prisoners had to choose who would be the one to give their message to the town. Right after Sully explained this to those tied to the posts they immediately wanted Michaela to go and to explain the offer to the town. Sully looked at Michaela with a smile plastered across his face. He could face anything as long as Michaela was safe. He was surprised though seeing Michaela troubled rather than relieved. After a moment of contemplating, Michaela turned to Matthew, speaking to him with all the power of convincing she could muster, "Matthew, I know you are already a man and want me to go home to safety, but I can't leave you here still in danger." As Matthew opened his mouth in order to object, her voice became pleading when she explained, "I have promised my only and best friend, your mother, to take care of her children when she was dying. I have to keep my word, even though you, her eldest son, is all grown. You are only here because you wanted me to be safe as Horace and I rode out to the Indian village. But your brother and sister need their big brother! I can't save myself and leave you, I just can't. I could never live with myself if you wouldn't make it. I would have broken my promise to Charlotte and hurt Brian and Colleen."

Matthew could see the determination in her eyes, but he still protested, "Colleen and Brian would also be hurt if you never return home."

Of course Michaela knew that, but she needed Matthew to be safe more. He was definitely not happy about leaving her here, but he reluctantly agreed. He hoped the town would pay the ransom and choose her, the only woman being held and being the town's only doctor, to be freed.

The dog soldiers eventually explained their offer to the town to Sully for him to translate to Matthew. If the town brought a head of cattle and $100 to the place called Two Trees with a note saying who this payment was for, that prisoner would return to town. Matthew understood the deal and left for town.

xxx

As night fell, the women of the band brought a meal to the dog soldiers after which they retired to their teepees to sleep. No food or drink was offered to the prisoners though. They just remained tied to the poles. As the sun rose the camp started to awake. After the Indians had a light breakfast they left to do what needed to be done. The only people staying in camp besides the four remaining prisoners tied to posts were women.

As Sully knew, many tribes used the women to torture their prisoners. Watching them he could tell what was coming, but could do nothing about it. Once the women cleaned up from breakfast they congregated in front of their teepees, holding strong walking sticks. After a short coordination they surrounded the four posts with the prisoners in a large circle. They started to walk around the circle pounding their sticks up and down in front of themselves. As they kept going around and around they made their circle smaller and smaller. When they were practically on top of the prisoners they started to poke and hit them as hard as they could with their sticks. Using them like this was the most painful method. When someone was hit hard on his or her shins for example, a bruise showed almost immediately. Sometimes when a bruise became visible it seemed like many of the women used it as a target and kept hitting the same place.

Another spot where hitting was particularly painful was their faces. Sully winced when he saw Michaela being hit hard right on her cheekbones, which immediately brought tears to her eyes. On top of that, all this pounding on their rib cages probably even broke some bones so breathing became very painful, too.

Horace was the first to start begging them to stop and crying out in pain. If he had looked at his friends, he would have seen that once he started screaming he was hit and poked more than the others. This didn't mean though that the Indian women stopped hurting the others. Michaela was definitely not being treated easier than the men. To the women she was like any prisoner they were given to torture.

Both Jake and Michaela were grunting with pain when a particular sensitive place was hit or poked, unlike Horace's much louder reaction. Seeing Michaela being hurt like this affected Sully more than the beating he was taking. He blamed himself for her suffering. She was the first to pass out from the pain, and Sully was grateful for that. Once a prisoner was unconscious, the women concentrated their sticks on those who could still feel them. Eventually all of the prisoners were unconscious with their heads hanging down. Their clothes were ripped all over and where ever their skin showed there were deep purple bruises. The women who traveled with the dog soldiers had done their job well.

xxx

When Matthew made it to town he went to the bell in the center and rang it to call all of the residents to come out on the street. Seeing his brother, Brian and his sister ran to Matthew all excited to see him safe. They didn't get an answer though when they asked where their Ma was.

Once the townsfolk had gathered Matthew delivered the dog soldiers' offer. After he was done, everyone started talking at once. After much argument it was decided that Loren would donate a head of Olive's cattle for the ransom since she was on her ranch in Mexico. A collection was made to raise the $100. Yet when it finally came to the choice of who the ransom to pay for, there was much argument. Many wanted to set Michaela free. Hank, however, insisted that it should be Jake. He had been a resident from the founding of Colorado Springs, while Michaela had only been there for a little more than a year. Hank also believed that Jake was probably being the most mistreated because he had accidentally shot the Indian. More of Michaela's patients complained that it should be Dr. Mike that the town should choose because they needed her and she had done so much for all of them.

The argument that won out, however, was that Sully and Dr. Mike had always supported the Indians so they deserved what they got. The town believed the only good Indian was a dead Indian, but they could never stop these two from helping the Cheyenne. Matthew argued that the Cheyenne that they helped were not dog soldiers but it was the renegades that had taken them prisoner.

"The Dog Soldiers are Indians from many different tribes with many different traditions. They fight for all Indians. Around here they steal food to feed those on the reservation and take revenge on whites that hurt the peaceful Cheyenne," Matthew tried to make the townsfolk see reason. "They have said they will torture their prisoners, including Dr. Mike. We have to get her out of there!"

Even with Matthew's heartfelt appeal the town stuck with the decision to ransom Jake. As soon as Loren could get a head of steer from the ranch they took it and the $100 of the donated money to the place called two trees.

xxx

Back at the dog soldiers' camp Sully was worried. He knew a lot more than the others about what different tribes of Indians did with their prisoners. It terrified him when he thought about what was going to happen to Michaela. He prayed to the spirits that the town would hurry and pay the ransom for her. Sully realized that after the dog soldiers got as much ransom as possible, they would probably execute the prisoners that were left. He knew that most tribes killed their prisoners by either beheading them or burning them alive at the stake. Sully was also aware of the possibility that there would be more torture because most Indians believed in slow torture. Some tribes used knives to peel some of their prisoners' skin off. Others believed that burning sticks did this job better. Indians had many ways to make you wish to die. Sully couldn't stand the thought of any of this happening to Michaela. She had always tried to help the Indians and always treated them as equals. She didn't deserve this.

After breakfast the dog soldiers came over to the prisoners and untied them from the poles and retied them to the ropes connected to the horses. Sully knew it was going to be harder for them to keep up with the dog soldiers as they rode to another location because they were much weaker. They had not been given any food or water and had been standing the whole time. Yet this wasn't all yet; before they started, the prisoners were stripped of their shoes and socks. Walking on this rough terrain barefoot was going to be very painful and would add to their difficulty staying up with the horses.

As they moved to another camp all the prisoners were crying out in pain and falling to the ground but the horses mercilessly pulled them along until they could right themselves. By the time the Indians reached their new camp, all of the prisoners' feet were bleeding, cut and swollen. They were retied onto new poles, still standing on their abused feet. All of them had their heads hung low and had dried tear tracks on their cheeks.

Just a few minutes after the dog soldiers set up their new camp some more arrived, whooping and hollering and leading one head of cattle. When Sully saw this excited small party, he knew they were the ones that had gone to get the ransom. He prayed to the spirits that the town had chosen to free Michaela. He knew she couldn't take much more pain with no food or especially water.

The women of the tribe immediately took the steer to slaughter it. They would prepare a wonderful meal for this evening and dry the remaining meat for later. They used all parts of the now dead animal for different uses as they once did the buffalo.

While the women were busy, the leader of the dog soldiers brought a paper over to Sully for him to read out loud so everybody around would know what the town had decided. When Sully read he was shocked that the town had chosen Jake rather than Michaela. At first he thought of lying and saying it said Michaela rather than Jake, but he knew if he did that it could make things worse. If Michaela found out she would be very upset with him and probably return here to free Jake at the cost of her own life. Sully concluded that he couldn't change things so he just read what stood in the letter. Judging from all the expressions on the faces everyone was surprised that Jake was chosen over Michaela. Jake said he was sorry for Michaela, but inside himself he was thrilled. Silently he thanked his friends Hank and Loren who he assumed were instrumental in him being rescued. The dog soldiers lent Jake a horse and told him to tell the town that they would release another prisoner for the same size ransom left with this horse at the place called Two Trees.

After Jake left Horace and Sully both talked to Michaela about how surprised and sad they were that she was still there. Michaela said it didn't surprise her because the town hadn't completely accepted her and she hadn't been living in Colorado Springs that long. Sully couldn't believe how generous Michaela was being considering what she has been going through. He was hungry and thirsty; his whole body was bruised and hurt, especially his bloody feet. If he felt this awful how much worse must she feel? She was a petite woman, but Sully was learning that she might be small of stature but not of heart.

xxx

When Jake arrived back in town everyone came out to greet him. Jake thanked them for saving him. The first thing he asked for was some of Grace's cooking and some apple cider. People were surprised that what he wanted first wasn't a drink in the saloon. Jake realized he needed food and water before he could enjoy a whiskey. As Jake sat and ate, the town gathered around asking how he had been treated. He told them that he had been tied to a pole the entire time and was given not any food or water. Loren noticed Jake's bruises and how stiffly he was moving. The barber explained to the others what the Indian women had done to the prisoners with their walking sticks.

"Has Dr. Mike been treated the same?" Grace asked, her eyes wide.

"Yeah," Jake said taking another bite, "No food or water, and they hit her with the sticks the same as us men."

That really shocked the townsfolk, especially the women. When they started deciding if they could ransom another prisoner they fervently campaigned for Dr. Mike.

The town wasn't happy about finding another $100, yet Loren had no problem with donating one more of Olive's steers. In the end Horace was selected to be saved, despite his unpopularity. The main argument was that he had lived in Colorado Springs the longest whereas Sully and Dr. Quinn had supported the Indians all the time so they deserved what they were getting. In the note they eventually wrote they said they wanted Horace back and that they didn't have more money. Horace was the last prisoner they would pay for. Myra was thrilled that Horace would be saved, but she was upset that Dr. Mike was not. Many of the women shared her concern for the town's doctor. They didn't have much of a voice in the town's decisions though and that was why Michaela and Sully were not freed.

xxx

While some of the renegades waited near Two Trees for the ransom to be paid and to retrieve the note with the white man's decision, the ones back in the camp planed another way to have fun at their prisoners' expense. The women had enjoyed using their walking sticks on the prisoners and the whole tribe had enjoyed inflicting pain on them by making them walk barefoot to their new campsite. Now they were discussing what to do next. Sully tried to hear all that they were saying, but they were too far away for him to hear everything clearly. When Sully heard the word gauntlet he was really scared for Michaela. He hoped they would let him run for her as well as himself, but he feared they would not allow it because they have shown no desire to go easier on Dr. Mike. Sully knew what 'running the gauntlet' meant. All the members of the tribe that were in camp would line up in two rows facing each other, making a runway in between them. Each Indian usually held a club, but a few would prefer tomahawks. The prisoner had to run down between the lines to a safe spot at the other end while all the Indians tried to hit their victim with their clubs or tomahawks. If one of them hit the prisoner with a hard blow that caused him to fall down they all converged on the fallen prisoner hitting him hard until he forced his way onto his feet again and reach the end, assuming he was still able to do so. They could be forced to run this gauntlet several times.

Sully realized they would be running this on their already bloody, bare feet and they would be being hit on their already bruised bodies. He knew he had to tell to Horace and Michaela what they had to expect. After he explained the procedure to his fellow prisoners he told them no matter how much their feet hurt or any cuts they received from the tomahawks. It was important that they keep running as fast as they were able to the other end and avoid falling at all costs because that this was how they would get hurt the most.

As the Indians formed their lines they were whooping it up and swinging their weapons, looking forward to their fun to come. Michaela and Horace looked fearful and Sully tried to get the Indians to allow him to run his own and Michaela's turn, but they did not agree. Horace was sent down first. Every time he was hit he yelped and then he did just what Sully had warned him not to do: he tripped. As soon as he was on the ground the Indians surrounded him hitting him hard. Both Sully and Michaela encouraged Horace to get up and get to the safe end. Eventually he did make it back on his feet and finished. As he stood at the other end of the gauntlet he was breathing hard and his body was even more bloody and bruised, but at least he was still alive.

Next it was Michaela's turn. Sully prayed to his spirits and encouraged Michaela to go as fast as she could and stay on her feet. She gave him a brave but scared smile and turned to face the gauntlet. Her feet really hurt but she kept running as fast as she could and didn't let any of the blows knock her off her feet. She was really hurt, but it could have been a lot worse. After Sully made it through they were forced to run back too, but at least no one fell this time. The Indians tied them back on their polls and had a celebration around their campfire. The prisoners weren't going to be able to take much more of this. They needed help soon.

About that time the small group of dog soldiers that had been waiting to retrieve the ransom from the town came back, leading a steer. The town had paid the ransom for another prisoner. Sully prayed they'd picked Michaela this time. Michaela was so tired now that she couldn't be strong anymore; she wished to be allowed to go home. The dog soldiers brought the note to Sully for him to read aloud to all. Sully read the note to himself first to know what it said. No matter how hard he tried to disguise his emotions Michaela could see in his deep blue eyes that she had not been chosen to be freed. She knew somehow she had to control her emotions; she could not cry but had to appear brave and strong.

When Sully at last read the town's decision aloud they all learned two things. One was that Horace had been chosen to be released because he had been a member of the town the longest and had never supported the "savages." The other thing the town said was that there would be no more ransoms paid, they had no more money. Horace was sad that Dr. Quinn had to stay with no hope of being set free, yet he had no choice but leave. He did promise though that somehow the town would raise the Cooper children if she didn't make it back to them.

As darkness fell, Sully and Michaela sadly whispered to each other. They knew that the Cheyenne tribe they had always helped had abandoned them to the dog soldiers and that Colorado Springs refused to take care of them mainly because they'd helped these same Cheyenne. As they were about to fall asleep, as well as they could tied to a pole, Michaela told Sully, "I'm not sorry for one single thing I did for the Cheyenne even though I'm now going to die because I wanted to make their life easier. I truly believe it was right to be there for them."

"I'm sorry I got ya involved in this," Sully replied, his voice thick with emotion.

"I'm not," Michaela assured him.

One thing no one knew was that one dog soldier had been listening as these two prisoners talked. His name was Walks on Clouds. He was surprised how these two, even after being mistreated repeatedly, still supported Black Kettle's band although the tribe had committed them into the hands of the renegades. It dawned on him that maybe his father had been right, and these two whites were different. They seemed to walk between the worlds of the Cheyenne and the one of the white man, and now in their time of trouble both worlds had left them to suffer and die for their beliefs. To top it all, they didn't even blame them.

When the entire camp was asleep, Cloud Dancing's son snuck over to Michaela, woke her and gave her a ladle full of water. Even though she was very thirsty she only drank half of it, trying to get him to give Sully the other half, which he did. Sully tried to refuse it to send it back to her but she pressed her lips together and shook her head. Sully knew if he didn't drink, the water would be wasted, and so he gave in. They both thanked Walks on Clouds. After the water was gone and the prisoners started to fall back asleep, the young man untied his horse and rode back to Black Kettle's village.

The next morning, Sully and Michaela awoke to a heated discussion between the dog soldiers. Sully realized what they were arguing about and Michaela could tell he knew and was trying to protect her. She demanded that he tell her, insisting that she had the right to know what was going to happen next. Sully looked at her with sad eyes, but explained to her what he knew. "They are discussing how they are going to kill us. We are useless to them now since they can't get more ransom."

Tears were forming in Michaela's eyes, but she swallowed the lump in her chest and asked, "How will they do it? Will it be quick or slow and painful?"

Sully told her they were deciding between the two most common forms of execution used by all Indian tribes of this area. They usually either beheaded their prisoners or burned them alive. Michaela wasn't sure which to hope for. Burning of course would be extremely painful, but beheading would take many strokes with the knives the Indians had.

xxx

Walks on Clouds arrived back to Black Kettle's village in the early morning. The first person to spot him was his mother. Snowbird ran to greet her son with a big grin on her face. By the time she pulled away, Cloud Dancing and Black Kettle had come over to hear about the dog soldiers because they knew Walks on Clouds had been riding with them. After her greeting the first thing Snowbird asked was, "How is Dr. Mike?" Snowbird thought of Dr. Mike as one of her best friends and was very worried about her. Walks on Clouds told his mother that Dr. Mike was not doing well, and that the Cheyenne and the white town were letting her and Sully down.

Black Kettle immediately reminded them that they could do nothing because the dog soldiers had taken them prisoners, which meant they were in control of what happened to them. Cloud Dancing was surprised at what his son had just said. Walks on Cloud had always been against his parents' having white friends. "What changed your mind about Dr. Mike and Sully?" he wondered.

Walks on Cloud explained that he had overheard them talking, and in spite of all that had happened to them and was still to come they were not sorry they had tried to help the Cheyenne.

Growing even more worried, Snowbird immediately asked, " What do you mean? What had happened to them?"

"They have been tortured," Walks on Cloud informed his parents. "The women poked and hit them with their sticks until they passed out from the pain. They were bloody and bruised afterwards. Their shoes have been taken from them before they were tied to a horse and forced to walk to a second campsite, where they were re-tied to a pole and made to stand on these bruised and bloody feet." The young Cheyenne also mentioned that both, the doctor and Sully had been forced to run a long gauntlet while all the dog soldiers and their women struck them with sticks and tomahawks.

Snowbird was surprised that Dr. Mike was being tortured along with Sully. Walks on Clouds explained, "She was offered a chance to become One Eye's slave. She would have been allowed to live as long as she always did his bidding, submitted to his beatings and other depravities and bore his children. She chose not to live that way and rather wanted to be treated as the other prisoners. In spite of all she has suffered she has not asked to change her choice."

Snowbird knew that Dr. Mike would never let One Eye touch her. The Indian woman had tears running down her face as she pictured what her friend was going through. Cloud Dancing wondered why the dog soldiers didn't use their prisoners to get food in exchange for them. His son clarified that they did ransom the other prisoners, but the town claimed they were out of money to pay for the last two. They left Dr. Mike and Sully in the dog soldiers' hands because they had always supported the Cheyenne. This was the town's way of showing their disapproval of their actions. Now even Black Kettle understood what Walks on Clouds meant by saying that both the Indians and the whites had deserted Dr. Mike and Sully.

Cloud Dancing's son pointed out that neither of them had been given any food or water since they had been taken from this village. "Except for half a ladle of water I have given them last night before I left to come to here. And now they will have to listen to the dog soldiers discussing how they were going to execute them." He paused for a moment before he went on, "Actually, I am shocked. In spite all that had been done to them and although they know they will be executed shortly and painfully they are still not sorry they had tried to help us."

Turning to Chief Black kettle and her husband, Snowbird reminded them that both Dr. Mike and Sully had done many things for their tribe and that it would be wrong if they didn't save them now in their time of need. "Do you not remember how Sully had represented us in negotiations and how Dr. Mike had brought medicine especially for our children?" She also reminded Black Kettle how Dr. Mike had saved his life by taking a bullet out of his neck. Black Kettle and Cloud Dancing saw Snowbird's point and went off to ask the sprits how they could save their white friends in spite of the fact that they belonged to the dog soldiers.

xxx

Back at the dog soldier's camp the discussion was over. The renegades had decided how they were going to kill their remaining prisoners. They came over and dug out the posts that were no longer in use, leaving only the two with Dr. Mike and Sully tied to them. While they were digging their women started piling up dried brush in a circle around the prisoners. As the circle of dried wood grew both Michaela and Sully realized that they were to be burned alive. Sully looked over at Michaela with tears in his eyes and apologized. Michaela told him that none of this had been his fault. She had done what she thought was right and would do it again.

"We should try and work our feet free so we can hold them up away from the fire for as long as possible," Sully suggested. "This way we will feel the burning pain for a shorter time." He knew that wasn't much, but it was all he could think of to help Michaela.

"Most people that die in a fire don't die from burns," Michaela explained to him, "but from smoke inhalation. We should try and breathe in as much smoke as possible. If we are lucky we die before we feel the fire."

Sully shook his head yes to acknowledge that he understood her suggestion and would follow it. He looked at Michaela with tears in his eyes because he knew their time on this world was almost over, and he blamed himself. Michaela could tell from his facial expression that he did so.

Sully started to say something, but found it difficult and just kept stuttering. Michaela saw his difficulty, but didn't know what he was trying to say. "You can tell me anything," she reminded him quietly.

Sully looked deeply into her mismatched eyes and saw that she truly meant that so he finally said, " I love you."

He was sure that he should have kept his feelings to himself and that he had made a fool of himself, seeing the shock on Michaela's face. She just stared at him, but then a smile started to form on her lips. As joy became apparent on her face she answered Sully back, "I love you, too."

As they gazed at each other and Sully wished he could take Michaela in his arms and kiss her, they both started laughing. Of course they realized that their confessions of love weren't exactly well timed since they were about to die.

As the tribe's women continued building their circles with dry twigs, the dog soldiers looked at the two white prisoners, wondering if they were so dumb that they didn't understand they were about to be burned alive. It was beyond their comprehension how they could be laughing and smiling, but assumed they were just another example of crazy white people.

When the circle stood waist level to the prisoners, the Indian women stepped back. The men came over and stood around the wood holding burning torches. Michaela and Sully knew it was now and looked at each other with fear in their eyes. First Sully told Michaela that he believed that they would be together after their death. Michaela nodded her agreement. As the Dog Soldiers lit the ring in several places Michaela reminded Sully to breathe in deeply to take in as much smoke as possible so they could avoid the pain of burning.

xxx

Back at the Cheyenne village there was much discussion about what to do about Dr. Mike and Sully. When Black Kettle and Cloud Dancing came back from their sweat lodge they knew they were to save Dr. Mike and Sully. The spirits had decided. As the men of the tribe were discussing how to rescue their friends, Snowbird thought of Dr. Mike and mustered up the courage she always demonstrated and interrupted the discussion. The men were so surprised that she would chime in that they immediately stopped talking and looked at her. With her knees shaking, Snowbird reminded them that Walks on Clouds had told them the dog soldiers were already deciding how to execute their prisoners. "If you take too long," she said, "it won't matter which plan you choose because Dr. Mike and Sully will be dead once you arrive there."

The men realized she was right. They immediately mounted their horses and rode to the dog soldiers' camp. The women who did not have to take care of very young children followed. The Cheyenne still hadn't figured out how they were going to save Dr. Mike and Sully; they only knew that the spirits insisted they do.

When Black Kettle's tribe eventually arrived, the fires around the posts were burning so high they couldn't even see the prisoners. While the men of the tribe talked to the dog soldiers the woman took action. They jumped off their ponies and started to pull the burning brush away from the poles, hoping that when uncovered, Dr. Mike and Sully would still be alive. As they made progress in taking the burning wood away they didn't hear the prisoners screaming which would be the norm for people burning alive. Instead they heard coughing, which was a good sign. By the time the women had put out the fire and uncovered Dr. Mike and Sully whose coughs were diminishing, the men had convinced the dog soldiers that the spirits wanted the tribe to take charge of these last two prisoners. The women did not release the prisoners from their poles yet, waiting for orders from the men, but they did bring water to Dr. Mike and Sully so they could drink their fill.

It broke Snowbird's heart to see the condition of her two friends. Both were covered with cuts and bruises. They were slouching against their ropes due to obvious weakness from lack of food and sleep.

The dog soldiers decided to move their camp again and just abandon their prisoners for the Cheyenne to do with them what they please. Immediately after the renegades pulled out of the place, Cloud Dancing went over to the poles to help Snowbird release Dr. Mike and Sully. When Michaela was freed she collapsed, but Cloud Dancing caught her. Sully was a little stronger, but not much, and he was mostly concerned about Dr. Mike. Cloud Dancing put Michaela on his horse and jumped up behind her. Another warrior shared his horse with Sully. When they arrived at the village on the reservation the women gave their friends some soup. Michaela was so weak that Snowbird had to hand feed her. Then they were taken into a teepee and covered with soft warm furs to sleep. As Michaela was made comfortable she looked up at Snowbird and thanked her with a tired smile.

xxx

Sully woke up early and looked over at Michaela. She seemed to be sleeping peacefully. A small smile crossed his face. He couldn't believe it, they were alive and they had admitted that they loved each other. He knew she could change after this awful experience and hate him for getting her into this and never help the Cheyenne again, but he believed that this amazing woman would never do that.

He quietly slipped out of the teepee and went to the fire to sit with Cloud Dancing and Snowbird. Before Sully had a chance to speak and thank them for saving their lives Snowbird handed him some breakfast and Cloud Dancing started to apologize for letting his brother and the woman he loved suffer. Sully's face showed complete surprise, he asked his bother how he knew he loved Dr. Mike.

Both Cloud Dancing and Snowbird smiled and told him that everyone knew they loved each other, everyone but themselves. Sully, with a smile on his face, told his brother that they did now, that they had admitted their feelings. About this point Michaela woke up. She needed a few moments to realize where she was, but then she left the teepee and sat next to Sully with a shy smile. Snowbird offered her breakfast, too. The electricity sparking between these two was palpable. That was why the Cheyenne couple made up some chores that needed to be done for the tribe so they could leave and give their friends a chance to talk.

Sully smiled back at Michaela noting her shyness. He needed to be sure and so he asked, "Do you still love me? Or did ya just say that because we were about to die?"

Recognizing his anxiety, Michaela smiled and reassured, "I really still love you and will forever."

Hearing that, Sully leaned over and kissed Michaela directly on her lips. It was actually just a peck, but it sent sparks up and down their spines. When Sully pulled back, they both smiled at each other with a glint in their eyes.

After they finished eating they knew they had to decide what to do next. First they wanted to see Michaela's children, knowing they would be worried about them. They wondered if the siblings were still living at Sully's old homestead or had moved into town. At last Michaela and Sully decided they would first go to the homestead. However, apart from seeing the children Michaela wanted a bath and a change of clothes.

Fortunately, Bear and Sully's horse were still at the reservation so they could easily go back to town. Riding to the homestead, they both were thinking about how lucky they were to be able to go home. As the familiar place came into view they could see smoke rising from the chimney. This brought smiles to both of their faces. As they quietly entered the homestead the children, with their heads bowed saying grace, were sitting around the table. As Matthew was ending their prayer by thanking God for the food on the table and asking Him to protect Dr. Mike and Sully, Michaela added, "And thank you for bringing our family back together."

All three children jerked their heads around to look at them as Sully asked if they had enough food for two more. The children rushed from the table to give Dr. Mike big bear hugs. They shared their food and excited chatter filled the small homestead. After dinner and the dishes Matthew helped Sully heat water for Michaela's bath. Sully took a bucket with warm water and a bar of soap out to the barn so he could also clean up before sharing the straw with Matthew to sleep.

xxx

In the morning the family gathered around the table in the homestead again. Colleen had made everything she could from the supplies that were left. The family happily ate and planned what to do next. Michaela wanted to go open her clinic and return to her normal life. Sully and the children were worried about the people's reaction. Matthew tried to explain to Dr. Mike that the town had divided badly when they tried to decide whom to ransom. "Well, we will have to face them eventually. There is no other way if we ever want a healing."

Sully and Mathew rode their horses, but the rest of the family took the wagon for the way into town. Once they'd tied up in front of the clinic, Colleen took their list of needed supplies for the homestead to Mr. Bray. After Michaela unlocked her clinic she turned the sign on the door to 'Open', the first time in a long while. This brought a smile to her lips. She wanted to take inventory, make a list of the things to order, and she really needed to clean the clinic before she could perform surgery. But she finally felt at home.

As the family had rolled into town the citizens had noticed Dr. Mike and Sully alive and looking reasonably well. Most of their scars and bruises had faded and were hidden under their clothes. Their faces still showed the shadows of the cuts, but that was all that marked their time with the dog soldiers.

Hank was the first to notice their arrival. If he felt any guilt about leading the charge to vote against saving Michaela, he didn't show it. As her first day back in town progressed, her friends welcomed her and apologized for not being able to convince the town to ransoms her. Michaela, as usual, was very gracious. She told her friends that they couldn't control everything. "And of course I understand that the town wanted to save their residents that had lived there the longest," she tried to ease their minds.

Though her friends and especially Sully did not understand. They felt that the woman should have been ransomed first. When Grace and Robert E. came to express their relief at seeing Dr. Mike doing so well, Michaela in turn thanked them for taking care of the children when she was unable.

It wasn't much later that Myra entered the clinic, asking Dr. Mike if she could come over and look at one of Hank's girls who was feeling poorly. The girl was so weak that she wasn't able to walk. Of course Michaela went with Myra to see if she could help. Hank was in the back room getting a case of whiskey so he didn't notice Michaela coming in the saloon.

Just like before, Michaela had to tell the barkeeper that one of his girls couldn't work for a month. She startled him when she walked up and spoke to him. Hank's reaction was as at the first time, anger. He grabbed Michaela's arm to tell her no, yet she jerked away while tears were forming in her eyes. Hank had inadvertently grabbed her arm where one of her bruises, was covered by her blouse. Noticing her pain, Hank let go immediately.

Dr. Mike, however, rushed out of the saloon back into the clinic before she broke down. Being back at work didn't mean she wasn't still in pain. She only tried to hide it from everyone besides Sully. He knew what she felt like because he felt the same. She didn't want her children to know to what extent she had been injured, and she didn't want the town to feel sorry for her. She wanted the town to respect her as physician not out of pity. Shocked, Hank followed her across the street with his eyes. He suddenly realized that what Jake and Myra had tried to tell him earlier was true. Michaela had been tortured, and he was in a large part responsible. He respected Michaela the way she was trying to carry on normally and not make an issue of it. Hank, however, felt bad. He still thought it was her fault for helping the Cheyenne, but he should have tried to get her set free. He felt the need to apologize to Michaela, but in private because he had his tough guy reputation to protect. By the time Hank entered the clinic, Michaela had gotten a hold of herself and wiped away her tears. So she was able to put her doctor face on when she turned around to see what Hank might need. She was surprised at Hank's heartfelt words and she accepted them with her normal grace.

Things gradually returned to normal around Colorado Springs. Michaela and Sully continued to try and help at the reservation. They grew closer together after all they had been through. Sully shared with Michaela how amazed he was at her bravery during this crisis. She, in return, admitted how scared she'd been the whole time. Sully confessed that he had been, too. Yet they realized that one good thing had come from this atrocious incident: When they were about to die they had admitted their love for each other. They didn't go back to hide their feelings. Instead they explored them by sharing sweet kisses and holding each other. They definitely grew closer. Everyone could see they were a courting couple. The Boston doctor and the Indian loving mountain man seemed to be a strange match. Yet in spite of their differences, everyone seemed to be happy for them.

The children loved having Sully around more.

The next time Sully and Michaela went out to visit the reservation Michaela went off with Snowbird to treat some children while Sully and Cloud Dancing talked. Cloud Dancing told his white brother that he saw a light in his eyes and knew Medicine Woman had put it there. Sully smiled and nodded in agreement. As Michaela and Snowbird returned to the men Snowbird apologized to Dr. Mike for what she had to experience. Michaela assured her that she didn't blame the tribe because she understood that they had to let the dog soldiers take them because that was tribal law and beside she wouldn't be alive if the tribe hadn't stepped in at the end. Right before they returned to the men Snowbird smiled and said that she noticed that one good thing came out of that awful time. Michaela smiled back at her friend who gave her a wink.


End file.
